


July

by storm_dog_pirate



Category: Nikolai Series - Leigh Bardugo, The Grisha Trilogy - Leigh Bardugo
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, based on a prompt from a prompt generator, have this, yes because i am a lazy shit HAHA
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-28
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:40:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24963151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/storm_dog_pirate/pseuds/storm_dog_pirate
Summary: Zoya got ditched by her date, so a certain blond decided to pull her out of brooding.
Relationships: Nikolai Lantsov/Zoya Nazyalensky
Comments: 2
Kudos: 33





	July

**Author's Note:**

> Based on the song July by Far Caspian. Pls listen to it tho it’s good kjahsfdklas

Zoya slammed the door to the apartment close, shrugging off her coat and hanging it on the stand beside the doorway. She found her mood souring even more as she remembered the fact that her supposedly date for tonight cancelled at the last minute. 

His excuse was that he suddenly started not feeling well by afternoon and that he was tucked in bed with a fever. But when Zoya was on her way home, she had spotted him together with another girl in a restaurant. 

Not feeling well, indeed. 

Zoya tossed her heels carelessly on the shoe rack and stomped her way to the living room. Nikolai, her _infuriating blond_ of a roommate, was rubbing his eyes as he sat up from his position on the couch. By the rumpled mess of his hair and clothes, he looked like he just woke up from a deep sleep.

“Date’s done already?” he asked, reaching over the fallen papers on the floor. The table in front of him was a mess of books and lecture notes. He squinted at the clock by the wall before looking back at Zoya with a puzzled look. “It’s just eight in the evening. I thought I’d get the apartment to myself until midnight at least.”

“Well, you have to endure my presence now,” Zoya said as she walked over the fridge and snatched a can of beer in the chiller. “My date ditched me.”

Nikolai was halfway pushing his glasses back to his eyes and stopped, eyes widening. They were still red from sleep. “Really? Wow, he’s a dumbass.”

“Agreed, but you’re still the biggest dumbass.” Zoya waved a hand to him when she went over the couch. “Scoot.”

The blond looked up at her with eyes alight with amusement. He edged over the other side of the couch. “Someone’s in a bad mood.”

Zoya glared at Nikolai. “Wouldn’t you be pissed when your supposed date ditched you and you see him with someone else on the way back?” she said, almost too sharply, and she immediately felt bad for lashing out at him. She shook her head, averting her eyes, and mumbled, “Sorry.” She thumbed the can of beer open and took a long swig. “It sucks. He could’ve just told me he wasn’t interested.” 

There was a long silence after that, and it made Zoya a bit thankful for the quiet. It was one of the things she appreciated from the blond—he knew better than to offer empty words of comfort or anything related to that. But he had his own ways to do it; sometimes with useless jokes and random stories from his childhood. 

It was a weird way, but Zoya found it endearing nonetheless. Not that she would ever say it aloud. 

Finally, Nikolai said, “Have you eaten?”

Zoya paused in taking another drink from the can. “Yeah. In the diner from a block down on my way home.” She furrowed her eyebrows. “Why?”

The blond grinned. “Ah, perfect,” he said. He closed his laptop hastily and stood up, bolting to his room. After a minute, he emerged from his room. He had changed his shirt for a black sweater, and was shrugging on a gray coat. “Let’s go.” 

Her furrowed brows turned into a full frown. “Where?” she asked, confused. “And don’t you have an exam tomorrow?”

Nikolai walked over to her and held her wrist, the physical contact making her face heat up. But she didn’t dare show it. “Just somewhere. You’ll know,” he said, and then he was gently tugging her up from the couch.

“Lantsov, if this is one of your pranks again, I will kick you out of our apartment,” Zoya warned, but still allowed herself to be pulled up. “Really, where are we going?”

The infuriating blond had the audacity to answer her with only a grin.

A steaming cup of coffee was held near to her face, startling Zoya from her seat. She looked up and saw Nikolai grinning yet again, and she had the urge to wipe it off his face. Or probably just kiss him. 

“Alright, what do you want?” Zoya asked as she took the coffee from his hands, letting the warmth of the cup seep through her skin. 

Nikolai frowned. “What do you mean?” He sat down beside her on the bench, with the view of the neighboring city on the other side of the bay in front of them. The blond had decided to take her to the city park at this time of the night when it was freezing cold. 

“You’re offering me coffee, which you rarely did. So I guess you need a favor?” 

He feigned a hurtful look, putting a hand to his chest. “Am I not allowed to cheer you up anymore?” he said, taking a sip from his own drink. “I know you feel disappointed about your failed date tonight. Don’t worry, he’s still a dumbass, and I still know I’m the biggest dumbass. But I also know that your brooding is always soothed by coffee. So there you go.”

Zoya blinked. She tried to ignore the fact that she was moved by the blond’s words, but knowing she failed when she found it hard to breathe. She looked away from him before he could see her face. “You could’ve just made instant coffee back at the apartment.”

“You’re hurting my pride, I even bought your favorite brew,” he said, and attempted to pout. Zoya almost laughed on the rim of her own cup. Nikolai noticed it, and laughed as well. “See? Admit it, I’m your happy pill.”

“You think too highly of yourself.”

“But it’s true, though. Otherwise you wouldn’t let me drag you here.”

“If I didn’t _let_ you drag me here, you will pester me until I give in. Trust me, I did us both a favor by agreeing immediately.”

Nikolai smiled, the one that reached his eyes and made them look full of warmth. “There she is. I thought I wouldn’t see you for the rest of the night.”

His words made her face heat up again, and she had to shake her head with a scoff to cover up her blush. “So your plan is to drag us into the freezing cold just to drink coffee?” 

“Not really,” Nikolai said, checking his watch. Then he looked up and pointed a finger upward. “We’re just in time for _that._ ”

The first burst of fireworks lit up the night sky with a mix of colors, and was followed by another. Zoya was taken aback with the sight. It had been a while since she had seen a fireworks display, but it still fascinated her all the same. 

Nikolai chuckled and said, “It’s not so bad, is it?” 

“Are you kidding me? It’s amazing.” 

Zoya looked back at him and was about to say something, but the words got stuck in her throat when she saw the contented look on his face as he looked up at the bursts of colors covering the sky. Perhaps her date ditching her earlier wasn’t so bad, if it meant having this moment with her annoying yet endearing roommate. 

Maybe she was just looking away from someone she refused to acknowledge that was always there for her.

Nikolai must have felt her look at him because he turned to her, an eyebrow raised. “What?”

Zoya just smiled and shook her head. “You’re still a dumbass.”

“I know,” he said, smiling back. Then he winked. “You’re welcome.”

They both looked up in the night sky again, silently watching the fireworks that continued through the night. 

And when Zoya braved to reach a hand over to his and intertwine their fingers, she felt Nikolai hold her hand back. 


End file.
